PPP rejects key proposals in 27th Amendment: Bilawal

Bilawal says PPP’s CEC will reconvene Friday to finalise decision on proposed Constitutional Court

Pakistan Peoples Party Chairperson Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said the party’s Central Executive Committee had rejected most of the proposals for the 27th Constitutional Amendment, declaring that the PPP would not compromise on the equal representation of all four provinces.

Addressing a press conference after the CEC meeting on Thursday, Bilawal confirmed that a PML-N delegation led by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had recently met the PPP to seek its support. He was flanked by senior leaders including former prime minister Yousuf Raza Gillani, Sherry Rehman, Nayyar Bukhari and Shazia Marri.

He said the proposals under discussion pertained to the Constitutional Court, National Finance Commission (NFC) Award, education, population planning, executive magistracy, and the transfer of judges. The PPP CEC, he added, had reviewed each of the items.

Bilawal stated that the party had decided to reject any proposal seeking constitutional protection over provincial shares. “As far as the proposals involving constitutional protection of the provinces are concerned, the PPP rejects them and is not willing to support them under any circumstances,” he said. He further said the party would not support any move that amounted to reversing devolution. “The CEC meeting held today has decided that the PPP will not support such proposals,” he added.

Read More: Govt finalises initial 27th Amendment draft for cabinet review tomorrow

However, Bilawal said that the PPP was willing to back one element of the proposed amendment — a change to Article 243 concerning top military appointments. “It is easier for me to tell you which proposal we are willing to support — and that is only one,” he said.

“The government has proposed an amendment to Article 243 to rename the position of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and introduce a new post of National Strategic Command. The PPP’s Central Executive Committee has authorised me to announce that the party supports only this amendment. All other points have either been completely rejected or discussions on them will continue tomorrow.”

Commenting on the proposal to establish a Constitutional Court, Bilawal reiterated the party’s long-standing position that such a body must ensure equal representation of all provinces. “Even in the context of the Charter of Democracy, our party’s position remains that we are not ready to compromise on equal representation of all four provinces,” he said.

He noted that while the Charter of Democracy did refer to the formation of a Constitutional Court, “There were other matters included in the Charter as well.” He said the PPP’s CEC would meet again on Friday to continue discussions and reach a final decision regarding the proposed Constitutional Court.